Thorndike: Listen to the 97 percent

Saturday

Mar 22, 2014 at 8:45 AMMar 22, 2014 at 8:45 AM

Sumner Weisman criticizes Ed Markey, Al Gore, and John Kerry for having an opinion about climate change without having graduate degrees in climate science ("Support for a climate change skeptic. March 18) It is silly to demand that a representative have an advanced degree in a topic before legislating on it. Does a politician need an art history degree to vote on funding the NEA?Markey, Gore, and Kerry believe climate change is a grave danger because 97 percent of climate scientists believe climate change is a grave danger. Climate change deniers are labeled "flat earthers" mainly because they believe climate skeptics who have no expertise in climate science. For example, one of the lead skeptics is Steve McIntyre, a semi-retired mining expert who had a lead role in the "climategate" controversy which has since been discredited. Another highly public climate denier is Ross McKittrick, an economics professor who signed the Christian-fundamentalist sponsored Cornwall Declaration which states that climate change is an "unfounded or undue concern," even before he began attacking climate scientists.The list of climate change deniers relying on specious logic is long, but 97 percent of legitimate climate scientists believe that our climate is approaching a crisis point. By listening to writers like Weisman we are wasting valuable time hashing over questions that are settled. We need to do something now to reduce carbon pollution. Putting a tax on carbon-polluting fuels would be a good first step.JACK THORNDIKEBoston